The Story of Charles Beauchamp
by NASCARLUCY
Summary: This story hasn't been told. How did Charles Beauchamp become the Redmont Riper? What happened to him prior to getting caught.
1. Chapter 1

Fall 1945

Gellert Grindelwald had escaped from the Castle in 1945 with the help of the American forces. An SS officer and 3 men under his command were arrested for torturing him. The four were held in a holding facility which was across the street from a Catholic church. Grindelwald went into the church service with 2 other American servicemen, telling them that he was afraid of 4 men who had tortured and tried to kill him. After the church service, Grindelwald was going to be taking to a processing center for Jewish refugees who were going to Israel. The processing center was an hour away.

Everyone stared at Grindelwald when he came in. He had the tattoo of a number on his forehead and he had a shirt which had the Star of David on it which was ripped and tattered. Sgt. Samuel Goldberg and Sgt. Mario Rossi were sitting on either side of him. The church service was uneventful.

As the church bells rang out, Grindelwald laughed to himself. He had cast a spell that caused the SS officer and the 3 men to disappear and for everyone at the American camp to forget he existed.

He was driven to the processing center and waved goodbye. He had already cast a spell where no one would remember him being there. When it became nightfall, he flew away.

"Okay, this is insane Sam. We both know that Gellert Grindelwald was here. We took him to the church service. Our commander arrested an SS Officer and 3 men under his command two days earlier. We come back and no one has heard of them nor did they know that we had driven to the processing center."

"I know, this is crazy. I knew something about that guy was off. First of all, I know that he's isn't Jewish. If he was raised Jewish like I was, he would know about the different rituals or be familiar with Jewish Holidays. He knew nothing about this, which I find odd especially if he's saying that he came from an Orthodox family. "

"Well, in a couple of days we will be out of here and will be in England. I'm glad this war is over."

"I'll drink to that."

Later that night Sgt. Rossi couldn't sleep. Sometimes when he couldn't sleep, he would gaze at the stars. This night there was a full moon. He happened to see what looked like Grindelwald flying around. Grindelwald was wearing a black cape and looked like a vampire. He let out a scream that didn't sound human. Then he disappeared into the night. Everyone within 20 miles heard the scream. Sgt. Rossi wasn't the only one who saw Grindelwald. Sgt. Goldberg also saw him but never told anyone.

Both couldn't wait to get out of Germany.

Early 1960's – Samuel Goldberg and his family took a cross country trip and had gone thru the town of Grindelwald at night. His wife and kids were sleeping and didn't notice. He was relieved.

Grindelwald looked into his crystal ball and laughed. He knew that his actions had really freaked people out and Samuel Goldberg had never forgotten it. Neither had Mario Rossi who was with Mount Rushmore and who he knew would never show up in town. The two men had parted ways after returning to the US and didn't keep in touch with each other, even though they said they would.

Grindelwald had someone that he was grooming to do evil. He wanted to make sure it was not flesh and blood or family by blood.


	2. Chapter 2

Winter 1998 - Saturday

David Rossi and Aaron Hotchner had never been to North Dakota. It was a very cold day when they arrived in Grand Forks in the middle of the day. FBI field director of North Dakota Carl Goldberg met them at the airport. They went straight to the office in downtown Grand Forks, were briefed and then headed out to Grindelwald.

"I'm going to brief you on what I know about the town of the Grindelwald. It's about two hours west of Grand Forks off of Hwy 2 and the population is about 2,000, nearly all who are related to the Grindelwald family either by blood or marriage. They bring in new blood when they get married but what is interesting is a lot of the new blood came from orphanages throughout South Dakota. . The town was founded by Gellert Grindelwald in 1946 who was born in 1883 and died in 1986. There were 100 people who came with him. He's told people when he came to North Dakota that he spent time in a German POW camp in Douglas Wyoming. We checked that out and it isn't true. I checked with field office in Cheyenne and believe it or not there is a file on this guy. Apparently he showed up in November of 1945 and stayed at a place called Florence's boarding house for a couple of days. Told Shirley Brown who was about 15 years old at the time (she's Florence's niece) the same story about being a German POW. Florence called authorities (this was early on Thanksgiving day). The guy left before dinner was served. They put out a bulletin on him but he was never seen again. Florence is deceased but her niece Shirley Brown Miller who is about 68 years old remembers him well. I talked to her on the phone and got some information from her. Apparently this guy told her that he turned himself into a bird and flew from Germany to Wyoming."

"What does this have to do with Charles Beauchamp? Is he related to them?"

" Aaron, He's not related to the Grindelwalds. He shows up in town and Gellert Grindelwald took him into his home. This was back in the early 1960's. This Grindelwald character became a minister and founded the Grindelwald Lutheran Church in 1950. The same year Grindelwald became a city and the and formed a new county, Grindelwald County in 1951. No one objected to it. Charles Beaucamps last victim was a 69 year old woman from Fargo,and this murder was extremely brutal. The worst I've ever seen. Here's some of the pictures."

Rossi and Hotchner cringed when they saw the photos. Rossi had seen some really terrible things but this was something else.

A couple of hours later

The conference room had several computers on as well as several TV sets which was focused on Grindelwald, North Dakota which was about 2 hours away. A news reporter was outside of Grindelwald reporting on the situation.

"This is a picture of the Gellert Grindelwald Lutheran church which is where serial killer suspect Charles Beauchamp had barricaded himself in and is threatening to take his own life. He has taken Pastor Gellert Grindelwald the 4th as a hostage and has threatened to kill him as well. He had told law enforcement that he will not be taken alive. The stand-off has gone into its 10th hour."

"I don't want to go to prison. I will die there." said a very desperate Charles Beauchamp.

"Charles, you need to turn yourself in. For your own safety and well-being." said Gellert 4th .

"I can't. I just can't." said Charles who could heard sobbing.

"Pastor Grindelwald is trying to help you. He is concerned about your well being."

"Go to hell." screamed Charles as he hung up the phone.

David Rossi had taken over as the main hostage negotiator.

Gellert 4th knew that he was armed with a semi-automatic gun and had pointed it at him and threatened him with it. . Gellert 4th had a wand that had more power than the gun. His great-grandfather told him only to use it in an emergency and this was a emergency.

'Sorry to have to do this Charles, but you gave me no choice and you will not remember any of this."

The wand let out an electrical charge with zapped Charles and knocked him out. There was a large boom. The SWAT team stormed the church. Charles Beaucamp was found in a fetal position sobbing and crying. A semi-automatic weapon was found on the floor next to him.

After telling the officers that he was okay, officers arrested Charles and took him away.

"Please Pastor Gellert. Don't let them take me away. I beg you."

In the back of the church, Rossi and Hotchner watched. The pastor seemed very sad.

The next day David Rossi and Aaron Hotchner were in Pastor's Gellert 4th office.

"After my great-grandfather died in 1986, Charles just gradually went downhill after that. I don't know what happened. He changed. He isn't related to the Grindelwalds.

The Elder Grindelwald, this is what we all called him found Charles Beauchamp hiding in one of the box cars on a train which was parked at the train yard. Elder Grandpa worked there part-time as a bull (railroad police). This was back in the early 1960's. He had run away from the Grand Forks Orphanage. He told my elder grandpa that he was incorrigible. Feeling sorry for him, my elder grandpa took him in and gave him a home. He cleaned up his act, did well in school, graduated from high school and went into the military. He never gave anyone here problems. You can ask anyone that lives here."

The town of Grindelwald looked like something out of a fairy tale. Looked like Disney designed it. The Gellert Palace was a bakery and restaurant. It served primarily German food. Tourist buses from the mid-west came into the town.

":Picture perfect little town, isn't it, Agent Rossi, Agent Hotchner, or so it looks. Never knows what lurks underneath." said Pastor Gellert smiling as he showed the Agents around town.

That comment sent chills up the spine of David Rossi. The fact that the Pastor Gellert 4th chuckled made his hair go up on end. He knew there was a lot more to this town.

"Well, if you are interested or still in town, we have church services at 10:00 am and 4:00 pm. We have a church dance tonight at 7:30 pm."


	3. Chapter 3

The Gellert Palace was the only hotel in town and looked more like a Las Vegas Motel than a hotel out in the middle of the nowhere. It was across the street from the Grindelwald Lutheran Church.

There was a movie theater which was about the history of Grindelwald, North Dakota. It was about 2 hours before check-in. Rossi and Hotchner decided to watch the 10 minute clip.

"I like to welcome you to Grindelwald, North Dakota. My name is Gellert Grindelwald and it's by magic that I came here to North Dakota where I was called by God to be a preacher. I was older than most when I became a Lutheran Pastor but it was my calling. 100 of my followers from Germany came here to build the church. Now in 1983 our church has over 2,000 members and our college Grindelwald college has over 1,200 students...

The film showed the inside and outside of the church as well as the college which was down the street.

We have a variety of majors including business, liberal arts, theater dance etc.

Washington DC 1998 FBI Office

"This man claims to be a Lutheran minister but he's isn't. He never went to any Lutheran seminary in the US or Germany. He claims to be an Independent Lutheran but such a group doesn't exist. He also practices magic which is what your grandfather was an expert on." said Senator Mike Carson to FBI Special Agent Robert Scamander.

"Okay, so who is this man?"

"Gellert Grindelwald."

"Well, I've heard of him but he's dead. Been dead for a long time. He was born in 1883 and...

"Agent Scamander, Gellert Grindelwald has been dead since 1986."

"Okay. He's dead, so what does this have to do with...

"He's linked with Charles Beauchamp, the North Dakota serial killer...

Reluctantly, Agent Scamander took the VCR tape from the Senator and after the Senator left viewed the tape. It was labeled Halloween 1983. He was able to hook up a video conferencing call with Agent Rossi and Hotchner. He briefed them on what the Senator said. He also managed to get his grandmother Newt hooked up to the video conference. Newt Scamander had his mind but his body was failing, so he was in bed. He also was hard of hearing, so the volume was up very high.

"The 100th birthday of Elder Pastor Gellert Grindelwald who turned 100 this year." The film started with showing the social hall where the birthday party was to be held. A large group of people were outside the social hall lined up and came in single file and took their seats in the auditorium. The seats in the social hall were like a circle. There was a large stage and platform and then there was a large circle which was level with the platform

Once everyone was seated the Grindelwald Lutheran Academy Color Guard came into the room. They presented the colors in the large circle area and then everyone did the pledge of allegiance. A flag was placed in the middle of the circle with the Elder Grindelwald sitting in front of it.

The Star Spangle Banner was then song by Stephanie Grindelwald who was the great-granddaughter of the Elder Pastor. She was facing the flag but the elder Grindelwald was still sitting in front of the flag in his motorized wheelchair. Everyone was saluting him.

"Weird. It's looks like everyone is saluting him instead of the flag. Very strange. " said Hotchner.

"Yep, weird." said Rossi.

"I want to bless you all for your moral and spiritual support." said Elder Grindelwald who blew kisses to the crowd who was cheering. Thank you. Thank you."

The Elder Grindelwald pulled a wand out of his pocket and held it high. The crowd cheered and chanted "For the Better Good. For the Better Good." He then went around in the circle and the wand gave off electrical pulses as the crowd continued its chant. Once he had completed the circle, he said something very strange and fire came out of the wand.

The platform had been modified and it disappeared and Elder Grindelwald was in the center of the room. He had a bible in his hand.

"I would like to thank all of you for coming this evening. Well, my gosh, it's been a long time since we first started here. I escaped from a NAZI prison and came to the US. I was tortured by the NAZIS. See what they did to my eyes but I can still see. The lord gave me back my sight. I forgave them as Jesus told us to forgive our enemies. The Bible talks of forgiveness to our enemies. 70 X 70 Forgiveness. What a challenge. One hundred of you from Germany and England were loyal to me and came to my defense in when everyone else abandoned me and tried to throw me in jail."

The Elder Pastor took a sip of water and continued.

"I came here back in the summer of 1948. My son and daughter in law lived in Grand Forks and I lived with them for a while. I wanted to find a place where people could be safe and not be fearful. I was harassed and threatened by those in North Dakota who didn't understand me or my followers. The Lord was on our side, yes he was...

The Crowd chanted, "For the Greater Good. For the Greater Good."

"We ended up having to form our own county, our own government, our own police force, our own community our own schools and college, but we did it and know we are over 2,000 strong and we will not be defeated. We prevailed just as Jesus prevailed against those who harassed and persecuted him. We been investigated numerous times and officials found nothing wrong because we didn't do anything wrong. The tax payers of North Dakota would be angry if they found out how many money was spend and this included the FBI field office in Grand Forks who said they could find nothing criminal that we did because we didn't do anything criminal. We are a Christian Community, not a Criminal Community. The FBI field office recognized this in two hours. It took the IRS 4 hours to discover this. I invited them to our town, our church and they interviewed the police force. Found nothing wrong. God is on our side."

"Come Children, gather around me. These are all my children."

The very loud TV could be heard by Queenie and her sister Tina who were in another room chatting.

"Hey, Newt would you please turn that down." yelled Tina.

"I don't think he heard you."

Queenie came into the room with her walker. She also was hard of hearing but the TV was so loud that she could hear everything. She sat next to Newt who didn't notice as his eyes were glued to the TV.

"I knew he wasn't dead, Newt. I knew it. He escaped and no one knew it.." said Queenie who spoke as clapping and cheering could be heard. This went on for 5 minutes.

"You don't have to worry about him Queenie. He died in 1986. This recording took place in 1983.

"Evil man. He's a serial killer and I wouldn't be surprised if he wasn't trying to grooming someone in that crowd to become one as well. I wouldn't be surprised if that Charles Beauchamp or whatever his name was, wasn't already groomed by him." said Queenie.

"The Elder Gellert Grindelwald has a total of 15 children, He was married three times, the first wife died in 1950, then he married again in 1952, second wife died in 1955, and then he remarried in 1961.. His third wife was 42 years old (the other ones were much younger than he). He had 3 children that were born out of wedlock in the 1920's and 1930's. They live in North Dakota.

" So much for the spell that was put on him."said Newt with regret as he was the one who cast the spell and didn't do it correctly. It only protected Queenie from pregnancy by him.

"Well, he's been around. He's almost like a cult leader. Certainly has characteristics of it. But watching this video doesn't prove anything Robert. He was dead before the killings started but it's possible he might have influenced Charles Beauchamp. No way to tell. They've been investigated many times by the state of North Dakota, even undercover agents went in there. One went to college there for 4 years and saw nothing illegal go on. The school was rather lax compared to most religious schools. No restrictions on visitations. He probably knew they were there and he knows how to use magic so anything he did would either be hidden or if anyone outside the group saw anything, they wouldn't remember it."


	4. Chapter 4

Sarasota, Florida 1998 – Video conference

It was decided that Carl Goldberg would interview Mario Rossi.

"For the record, I'm stating that I'm not related to Sam Goldberg who will be part of the questioning."

"Good morning, Mr. Rossi."

"Good morning."

Mario Rossi who had recently had hip surgery was at home in bed. Marie Rossi was sitting in a chair next to him.

"Tell me about what you known about Gellert Grindelwald."

"Sam Goldberg well he was Sgt. Sam Goldberg and I saw an old castle on fire. When we got there, we found Gellert Grindelwald passed out and barely alive. I noticed that a number was tattooed on his forehead and that he was in prison clothing that those in the Concentration camps were forced to wear. He told us that he had escaped from Dachau and was caught by a SS officer and his men while entering into Germany. He told me that they had murdered his family and tortured him. He said he had been punched in the face and he had bruises on his cheeks. Shortly after that, we found a SS officer and 3 or 4 men with him. They matched the description and so we arrested them. They all denied torturing him and said that they had never seen this man in their lives."

"You had told someone that Sam Goldberg didn't believe that this man was Jewish. Why do you think that was."

"Sam Goldberg told me that this guy lied about being Jewish. He knew this because Gellert didn't seem to know anything about Jewish customs, traditions. If he were raised in the Orthodox Community, he certainly would know. After we took him to a processing center for Jewish immigrants, we went back to the base but what happened was weird. It was like nothing happened, no one remembers finding Gellert in the burning castle, half starved to death. The SS officer that I arrested and the men under his command whom Sam arrested, no one remembered and the records of them being arrested were gone."

"What happened after that?"

"That evening, something really weird happened. I couldn't sleep and I was looking out at the stars. It was a full moon. I see what looks like Gellert Grindelwald dressed in a black suit with a black cape flying around. He looked like a vampire. Then he or whatever it was screamed. It sounded like an animal and it didn't sound human. Then he or whatever it was disappeared. A couple of days later Sam and I were shipped out to England. This had been in the works for a couple of months. We were there about 4 months and then we went home."

"Did you ever seen Gellert Grindelwald again?"

"No, I didn't."

A couple of hours later Sam Goldberg was interviewed from his home in Tampa by Aaron Hotchner.

"Sgt. Mario Rossi and I found Grindelwald barely alive. He had a tattoo on his forehead and had prison clothing that concentration camp victims had to wear. He told both of us that his family was dead and that he was tortured by the Nazis. He was sent to a doctor for an exam. The doctor told me that he wasn't circumcised and I knew that he was lying about being Jewish, especially if he grew up in an Orthodox family. He didn't know what the brit milah was which is the circumcision ceremony. This is done 8 days after a male child is born. He didn't know anything about this."

Hotchner reviewed the video recording with Rossi.

"Basically they said the same thing and both of them ID's Mr. Grindelwald."

"Yes, Aaron , but what happened after he was dropped off at the processing center for Jewish refugees. How did he get into the US?

Aaron had a folder in his hand. It had taken him several days to complete.

"Turn out David, that Grindelwald went to Israel with a group of refugees. He was listed as being a Jewish person from Russia. While in Israel, he went to a doctor who circumcised him. In the medical records, Grindelwald told the doctor that he was from Russia and that circumcision wasn't done. A lot of Jews from Russia weren't circumcised due to religious persecution, so the doctor didn't question this. But it would be very odd or unusual for someone from an Orthodox family not to be circumcised."

"Do you know when he left Israel?"

"Apparently shortly thereafter, because there is no other record in Israel. He shows us in New York City in January of 1947. Applies for citizenship and becomes a citizen in February of 1948. List his ethnic background as Russian of Jewish ancestry. He's actually English and Germany ancestry. He doesn't have any Jewish ancestry. None that I could find."

"Where did he get his 100 followers?

"That I haven't exactly figured out but I know they arrived in North Dakota during the summer of 1948 with 100 people with him. . If you notice pictures of Grindelwald , he doesn't have the tattoo on his forehead after he was granted citizenship."


	5. Chapter 5

"The Elder Gellert Grindelwald saved my life. I was left as a baby at an orphanage in Grand Fork where I was beaten and abused on a regular basis. I ran away by hopping on a train. The Elder Gellert took me in and treated me like his own son. He was always good to me. He didn't believe in corporal punishment and never laid a hand on me."

Aaron Hotchner had brought in a Arby's Beef & Cheddar value meal with fries and a regular coke. Charles Beauchamp took a bite out of the sandwich and then continued.

"After the Elder Grindelwald died, I went nuts. I don't know why. He would be appalled at my behavior and he always demanded that women be treated with respect. He would have disowned me..

Tears came down his face and Charles started sobbing.

"I did this because of the abuse I suffered. If you noticed, every woman I killed had a connection to an orphanage.

A couple of hours later after the pair had interviewed Nancy Beauchamp, they had lunch at a small cafe in downtown Grand Forks.

"Couldn't have asked for a better husband or father is what Nancy said and everyone in town pretty much says the same thing about him. What's interesting is that Nancy also lived at the same orphanage and basically tells the same story of being abused for years." said Rossi.

"She got pregnant when she was 16 and ran away from the Grand Forks Orphanage . The elder Grindelwald could no longer drive, so Charles drove him around. They had gone to Grand Folks and were driving home when they saw Nancy hitchhiking. This was August of 1979. On April 28th, 1980 Ashley was born. Shortly after that, Nancy married Charles Beauchamp and he adopted Ashley. In January 1982 Nancy gave birth to a son that was stillborn. She didn't get pregnant again." said Aaron, reading over the notes.

"The orphanage was closed in April of 1982 due to a arson fire which was originated in Matron Dorothy Lewis's room. She died in the fire but no one else was killed or injured. The matron actually was dead before the fire started. She was beaten to death with a blunt object. The fire burned the orphanage to the ground. I asked Charles about this fire and he denied setting the fire. It was only after the place was burned down that the stories about physical and sexual abuse came out. I think he might have something to do with it but you can't prove it."

Rossi and Hotchner had always been surprised that Ashley had been so open with them. She had been willing to talk to them when others would have either told them to get lost or would have wanted to crawl into a hole.

Their investigation had showed that those from the orphanage who had lived in Grindelwald had clean records. No arrest, not even traffic tickets. Some of them had left Grindelwald. Most lived in the state of North Dakota.


	6. Chapter 6

The trial

The victims of the killings had been primary old women between the age of 70 to 85 years old who worked or who had worked in orphanages throughout the state. They were several beaten, then strangled. None of them were raped or sexual assaulted. Charles had told Rossi and Hotchner that he was beaten as a child on a regular basis by the elderly matron at the Grand Forks orphanage. His first victim in 1987 was the daughter of the matron who was elderly and who worked at a Children's Home in Grand Forks..

He kidnapped her at gunpoint, forced her to drive 2 hours to the Redmond State Park which was in the middle of the state. He then tortured her for hours before killing her. He dumped her body in Redmond Lake and then drove off. Florence Downs was reported as missing but wasn't found until the spring which was 4 months later.

He killed in different parts of the state to avoid detection which he managed to do for 10 years.

Tears came down Nancy Beauchamp's face at the trial as she recalled the years of physical and sexual molestation that she suffered.

"The only way that I knew the molestation would stop would be if I got pregnant which I did shortly after my 16th birthday. I got drunk at a party and had sex with someone I didn't know. I don't even know his name. I knew that I was going to be sent away, so I ran away. The Elder Grindelwald was with Charles and I was hitching on Hwy 2 when they picked me up and I was brought to the Elder Grindelwald home where I was given food and shelter. His wife needed

Shortly after she had given birth to a stillborn, she was seen by the Elder Grindelwald at the church sitting in a pew weeping and crying.

'"You didn't deserve this Nancy. You didn't. I think we need to take action so that this doesn't happen again."

It was a cold February night around 10 pm when she and Charles helped the Elder Grindelwald into the van which had been modified. The Elder Grindelwald told Charles that they would be back in the morning.

Virtually no one was out on the road for the 2 hour drive. A police car here and there and maybe one or two vehicle. They got into Grand Folks at midnight and arrived at the orphanage about 5 minutes later.

"Do what you have to do Nancy."

A baseball bat was in the front seat as well as gasoline. Nancy had no memory of beating the matron with the bat. What she remembered was driving away from the orphanage as it went up in flames.

The next thing she remembered is being in bed with Charles.

She had been convinced by the Elder Grindelwald that she dreamed this but she wasn't so sure. Charles said that she had been home all evening. For a long time she thought she had dreamed this but now she wasn't so sure but she didn't want to tell anyone as she didn't want to go to jail.

Both she and Ashley were relieved that Charles had been convicted. So was Paster Gellert the 4th. He had been taught magic by the Elder. He had used the magic to uphold the reputation of the town but he knew many people were very distrustful.

After the trail, Ashley and Nancy went back to Grindelwald and Ashley went to college there. She felt safe there as people in North Dakota

One of the strangest things about the trial was that for 40 years, many children who lived in orphanages had ran away, an usually high number given that North Dakota wasn't a heavily populated state and some of it wasn't being reported to authorities. Most of the children were found and were found to have either lived in Grindelwald or had a link to the town. The ones linked to Grindelwald had no record of being reported to authorities.

Another think that was interesting to Rossi is that Charles Beauchamp was willing to talk to him. He was always polite and respectful towards them. Very open about what he did. Sometimes it was even hard for Rossi and Hotchner to believe that this guy was a dangerous serial killer. He reminded them that he was from time to time.

"There are many more like me, out there and you only find a fraction of these individuals. Criminal Profiles will always be needed until people learn how to treat each other better. Then maybe you will not be needed as much." said Charles Beauchamp.


End file.
